Sir Richard Branson is set to briefly leave earth's atmosphere on Sunday, risking it all to usher in a new era of space tourism that has been propelled by a billionaire-backed commercial space industry.
The two launches within ten days of each other leave some to speculate whether these billionaires are"democratizing space" as they claim, or seeking bragging rights here on Earth. Still, as with all spaceflights, swaths of viewers from across the globe are expected to tune in -- and there are no guarantees of safety as the ultra-rich use themselves as guinea pigs for their space-travel firms.
Branson will serve as a mission specialist on what is being dubbed the Unity 22 mission, the company's fourth crewed spaceflight on its VSS Unity spacecraft. Branson will be accompanied into space by fellow Virgin Galactic staff: Beth Moses , Colin Bennet , and Sirisha Bandla . Branson's role is to evaluate the private astronaut experience to prepare for future customers, which Virgin Galactic expects to do beginning in 2022.Flight details
As gravity pulls the spaceship back toward Earth's upper atmosphere, the astronauts will buckle back into their seats for reentry. Eventually, the spaceship will glide back to Spaceport America for a runway landing. Branson has said in previous interviews that the flight will take about 1 1/2 hours total.SpaceShipTwo Unity releases from VMS Eve for a second glide flight in New Mexico, Oct. 15, 2020.
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